Suction cleaner



June 4, 1940. w c. E 2,202,982

SUCTION CLEANER Filed June 20, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 fly. 4

INVENTOR ATTORNEY June4, 1940. w, G L 2,202,982

SUCTION CLEANER Filed June 20, 1958 v 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR William CiBell ATTORNEY hose into a port located at one side of the cleaner Figure 6 is an enlarged detail view in cross seccasing, the hose carrying an especially designed tion taken on line 6-6 of Figure 5; and fitting or converter member which serves to Figure '7 is a view in elevation of the converter transfer the source of suction from the main member with its rotative prop. nozzle to the hose. Conforming to the arrangement of any standl One desirable precaution in the dusting tool ard cleaner of the portable handle-maneuvered its fioor contacting prop;-

Patente'd June .4, 1940 UNITED. STATES PATENT OFFICE SUCTION CLEANER William C. Bell, London, England, assignor to The Hoover Company, North Canton, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application June 20, 1938, Serial No. 214,652 4 Claims. (Cl. 15-9) This invention relates to improvements in suctaken on line 4-4 through the floor contacting tion cleaners and more particularly to a suction portion of the elevating prop carried by the concleaner adapted to be converted from floor cleanverter member, as shown in Figure 3.

. 'ing operation to dusting tool operation through Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 3 but showthe medium of an auxiliary hose and connecing the application of a slightly modified type tion. of converter member and elevating prop in The converting of a suction cleaner from one which the rotation of the latter tilts the cleaner type of cleaning to the other is usually accombody after the converter member has been inplished by inserting one end of the auxiliary serted into its port;

operation of a cleaner, is the raising of the type, the main casing or body of the cleaner nozzle above its normal level with respect to the houses a motor-driven suction fan acting to carpet surface, this precaution being particucreate and maintain its suction within the nozzle larly important in the case where the cleaner is 2 extending transversely across the forward porequipped with a rotary agitator having solid and tion of the cleaner body and having a downwardnon-yieldable carpet contacting elements. In 1y opening suction mouth normally spaced a ordinary carpet cleaning operations the beating short distance above the plane of the carpet suraction of the agitator progresses with the move face. The bodypf the cleaner is supported upon ment of the cleaner, but during dusting toolthe floor by means of front and rear wheels 3- operation the cleaner may remain in a stationary and 4, respectively, and as clearly shown in Fig- 2 position and consequently, the constant beating ure 3, a rotative agitator 5 is housed within the of the carpet at one point may cause undue nozzle and extends the full length thereof. This carpet wear if carried on for an extended period agitator consists of a cylindric shell having heliof time. It is therefore advantageous to make 1 cally arranged beater bars 5a upon the surface provision for elevating the nozzle during conthereof, as well as longitudinally arranged brush verter operation and preferably by some means elements 51), one of the latter being shown as which functions automatically and as a part of projecting just below the plane of the suction the converter operation. mouth at the raising of the nozzle 2. Although The object of the present invention is to pronot clearly shown, the beater bars 5a are arvide a comparatively simple and yet eifective ranged to also project a slight distance below means of insuring the elevation of the nozzle as the plane of the suction mouth and it is the cona part of the converting operation, the nozzle tinual beating contact of the bars with the carpet elevation in this instance being in the nature of surface that is preferably to be avoided during a sidewise tilting of the cleaner. converter operation and which can readily be ac- A preferred embodiment of the invention is complished by a tilting of the cleaner body either 40 clearly disclosed in the accompanying drawings, from the front or from one side as is the method in which: employed in the present arrangement.

Figure 1 is a general view in front elevation, As heretofore ex'lained, the conversion for .showing a suction cleaner of a standard type as dusting tool operation is accomplished by insert- I it would appear during ordinary floor cleaning ing a converter member or fitting 6, mounted at 45 operation; one end of thedusting tool hose 1, into a laterally Figure 2 is a view in front elevation similar to opening port formed in one side of the cleaner Figure 1 but showing the cleaner tilted to perbody and leading directly into the inlet passage mit the insertion of the converter member with to the fan chamber through a port normally closed by a hinged valve or gate member 9, the

Figure 3 is an enlarged somewhat more deforward end of the converter fitting or member tailed view of the cleaner in front elevation with being so designed as simultaneously to close off portions broken away to show the converter arthe normal air passage to the nozzle and to estabrangement; lish direct contact between the fitting and the 85? Figure 4 is a detail view in vertical section fan eye In located centrally of the bottom wall of the fan chamber. Once inserted, the converter II which acts to lock the converter member in place and capable of being pressed to release the converter member for withdrawal upon completion of the dusting tool operation. The method and means for converting the cleaner to and from dusting tool operation is already well known and therefore the means for accomplishing the converting operation per se forms no part of the present invention.

However, it will be noted that attached to the converter member is a U-shaped prop member l2 with one end fastened to the cylindric base portion of the converter member and its other end to the forward and somewhat flattened blade-like portion thereof. Moreover, the prop member projects radially from the connected fitting and actually is attached to the 'underside thereof, since conversion can take place only when the fitting is inserted in oneway, namely, with the prop projecting downwardly, as in Figure 2. And. finally, the extreme dimension of the prop i2 measured radially from the axial center line of the converter member is somewhat greater than the distance from the imaginary center line of the converter port to the fioor surface; As a consequence therefore, to insert the converter member into its port, it isnecessary to tilt the cleaner slightly so that the prop will clear the floor. But upon lowering the cleaner the prop i2 supports it in a slightly tilted position on the two front and rear wheels on the far side.

The prop i2 is preferably a strip of thin metal stamped the desired bowed shape and with a slightly convex cross sectional contour, as clearly shown in Figure 4, although its precise construction is of minor importance.

Inasmuch as it is practically necessary to tilt the cleaner to insert the converter member because the prop l2 prevents the direct entrance of the converter member to its port, this sometimes inconvenient maneuver suggests the possibility of a modified arrangement which will permit the converter member to be inserted in the usual manner and then by rotating a radially disposed prop or cam member to tilt the cleaner body and at the same time to lock the converter memberinto its port.

Such a modified arrangement is disclosed in Figures. 5 to 7, inclusive, in which all of the parts are the same as heretofore described except the form and mounting of the prop. Thus, as clearly shown in Figure 6, the prop l3 has the form of a loop-shaped eccentric cam arranged transversely and projecting radially from the converter member II which is provided with an outer rotative sleeve or collar l5 surrounding the cylindric base portion lying exteriorly of the converter port. At the forward end of the collar I5 is an annular flange lia to which the ends of the prop l3 are riveted. This annular flange is also designed to fit into the entrance to the converter port and as clearly shown in Figure 7 is provided with a bayonet groove lib in its outer surface adapted to coact with a projecting lug I6 mounted at the entrance to the converter port.

Now, with this modified arrangement, the converter member would bepresented to the converter port in the cleaner casing while the latter is resting normally on the floor surface and with the rotative collar i5 turned to a position such that the cam-like prop ll occupies the dotted line position, shown in Figure 6, with the entrance to the bayonet slot l5b registering with the lug I6. In this position, the prop does not prevent the direct insertion of the converter member into its port, so that when the insertion has been completed, it is only necessary to rotate the collar IS on the converter fitting through a quarter'turn to tilt the body of the cleaner into the position shown in Figure 5, and simultaneously to complete the locking of the converter member into its port by the bayonet Joint.

The second or modified arrangement involves a somewhat more complicated and costly construction, but it has the two-fold advantage of eliminating the necessity for tilting the cleaner by hand before inserting the converter member and secondly, the locking of the converter member in place as the tilting movement takes place.

However, either arrangement provides a simple and efiective means for tilting the cleaner sufficiently to raise the agitator out of contact with the carpet surface during oif-the-floor cleaning operations.

Having disclosed a preferred embodiment of the invention as well as a practical modification thereof, I claim:

1. In a suction cleaner adapted to be converted to and from off-the-floor cleaning, the combination of suction-creating means, a nozzle communicating with said suction-creating means, an agitator mounted in said nozzle for contact with the surface being cleaned during off-thefioor cleaning, said cleaner being provided with a port also adapted to communicate with said suction-creating means during ofi-the-fioor cleaning operation and opening laterally outward and in relatively close proximity to the floor surface, anda converter member adapted to be fitted into said port during off-the-fioor cleaning operation and having a radially disposed prop member adapted to contact the floor and tilt the cleaner sufficiently to raise the agitator out of active contact with the carpet surface.

2. In a suction cleaner adapted to be converted to and from ofl-the-floor cleaning, the combination of a casing including suction-creat ing means and a nozzle communicating with said suction-creating means, a rotative agitator mounted in said nozzle, said casing being provided with a port opening laterally from one side therofat a point adjacent said nozzle and in relatively close proximity to the floor surface, and a converter member adapted to be inserted in said port in the act of converting said cleaner to off-the-floor cleaning operation and having a radially disposed prop member adapted to project downwardly therefrom a distance in excess of the height of said port above the floor surface, whereby the cleaner is tilted sufliciently to raise the agitator out of active contact with the carpet surface during off-the-fioor cleaning operation.

3. In a suction cleaner adapted to be converted to and from off-the-fioor cleaning operation and having a nozzle and a rotary agitator mounted in said nozzle for contacting the carpet during normal floor cleaning operation, the combination of a converter fitting mounted at one end of a dusting tool hose and adapted to be inserted into a port located in one side of the cleaner body to complete the converting operation, said port opening laterally and relatively close to the floor surface, and a prop member carried by said converter member and comprising a cam adapted to be manually rotated after 1 said converter fitting has been inserted into its port to contact the floor and thereby tilt the cleaner sufiiciently to lift the agitator out of contact with the carpet.

4. In a suction cleaner adapted to be converted to and from ofi-the-fioor cleaning operation and having a nozzle and a rotary agitator mounted in' said nozzle, the combination of a converter fitting adapted to be inserted into a port'in the body of said cleaner to complete the converter operation, said port being located adjacent said nozzle and opening laterally at a relatively short distance above the floor level, and a prop member rotatively mounted on said converter fitting and adapted to be shifted manually into contact with the floor surface after the insertion of said converter fitting into its.

port to tilt the body of the cleaner and raise the nozzle sufficiently to prevent contact between the agitator and the carpet during converter operation.

WILLIAM C. BELL. 

